The Meaning of Family
by xMysterious Darknessx
Summary: AU. Roxas is a neglected teenager who aspires to be a writer, and holding the key to his heart is Axel, a fire-summoning boy who helps him in his time of need. Can Roxas handle the pressure of being the new kid to a group of high school orphans? HIATUS


**: The Meaning of Family :**

**Summary:** AU. Roxas is a neglected teenager who aspires to be a writer, and holding the key to his heart is Axel, a fire-summoning boy who helps him in his time of need. Can Roxas handle the pressure of being the new kid to a group of high school orphans?

**Warning(s):** Yaoi, possible (and most likely) lemon (or lemons) in later chapters :D

**Pairing(s):** The hottest, most awesomest pairing ever, I present, AkuRoku! -heart- Oh, and of course there's gonna be some Sora/Riku, Demyx/Zexion, Cloud/Leon, Xemnas/Saix, and Hayner/Olette, aren't they adorable? :D (...There will be more to come...)

**Genre:** Romance/Drama, AU

**Rating:** M

**Disclaimer: **No, I don't own Kingdom hearts, which is why I like messing with the storyline :D Enjoy.

_Xemnas - Xigbar - Xaldin - Vexen - Lexaeus - Zexion - Saix - Axel - Demyx - Luxord - Marluxia - Larxene - Roxas_

_Chapter 1:A Place to Call Home_

_And so our story begins. It started as just a simple crush... A simple crush which grew into an unbreakable friendship. Now as they walk they walk the halls together, the world spins around them, in a boundless... a boundless..._

Roxas sighed as he once again crumpled up another paper due to dissatisfaction before tossing it into the nearby trashcan which was practically overflowing with crumpled papers by now. It had become a habit of his, writing had. Like an addiction that was harder to quit than that of smoking. It was unnerving, this thing he had for this one boy in his science class. His name was Axel. A tall, older guy, senior year -- if Roxas' sources were correct -- where as Roxas was a junior, not that it was a particularly big deal.

Somehow it was as if Roxas couldn't take his eyes off Axel. He was amazing, to put it simply. How his flaming red hair -- just longer than his shoulder blades -- stuck up in beautiful, unique spikes that made him so, well, Axel. This was probably why he wasn't doing too well in science. In fact, it was the only class he wasn't doing extremely well in. His father would kill him if he got anything lower than an A. Literally. He really didn't like displeasing his father. Too many bad memories...

"Hey," said Sora, taking a seat next to Roxas. He glanced toward the flooded trashcan, "More writing?" Although Sora was supportive of his best friend's writing, sometimes he was afraid it was consuming him.

"Hn," said Roxas, having been woken from his reverie. "Yeah… I can't think of an ending."

"Well I think you're a great writer," he said solemnly, "and I know you'll come up with something."

Roxas looked over at his best friend and smiled, "Thanks."

"What are friends for?" he said, wrapping an arm around his shoulder before giving him a friendly noogy. Roxas' complaints being drowned out by Sora's laughter.

"Hey," came a stern voice from behind. "What's going on here?" They both turned -- slowly -- to see a very upset Leon, holding a stack of books.

"Uh..." said Sora. "Nothing."

"You should be more quiet about it then," said Leon, trying his best to look threatening, which was good enough to fool them. "This is a library, not some play park."

Together they raised their hands in salute, "Yes, sir!" they whispered simultaneously.

Leon nodded. "Good," was all he said before walking back down the isle the file some books.

"I wonder what he's doing here," said Sora in a low whisper.

"I'll bet Cloud put him up to it," replied Roxas, a small smirk making its way across his lips.

Sora muffled his laughter. "Yeah, that would do it."

--

"Hey, Roxas, do you think Riku likes me?" Sora asked quietly, a bit embarrassed for asking in the first place as he stared at his feet. It was almost 6:30 and the sun was already beginning to set as they made their way home. School was becoming more and more complicated, it seemed. Not neccessarily having so much to do with the work, no, it was more of the problems people faced with each other. Too much drama.

"What?" Roxas asked, slightly taken aback by the question, seeing as they'd been going out for at least three months now. "Of course he likes you. He loves you. Why do you ask?"

"Well he's been acting kind of odd these past few days, you know, like avoiding me in the halls and not sitting with me in English class." This was one of the few classes Roxas and Sora didn't share.

"Maybe he just needs some space, you know, like what Hayner did to Olette, and then he turned around and took her on this big vacation to Destiny Island. You never know, maybe he's got something big in mind for you," Roxas said, shooting for encouragement with a big smile.

"Yeah, I guess..." Sora said half-heartedly.

Roxas stopped in his tracks to grab Sora by the shoulders to face him. "Sora," he began softly, "He loves you, he really does. I've never seen a guy more head-over-heels than he is for you."

A small smile tugged at the corners of Sora's lips. "Well I sure have. Do you want to know who?"

Roxas looked slightly confused, his grip on Sora loosening. "Huh?"

Sora lowered his voice to a whisper, "I've seen the way you look at him."

"Who?" Roxas asked. Now he was really confused.

"Axel," Sora said cheerfully. "Roxas' got a crush," he teased.

"No, I--"

"Oh, admit it already, Roxas, I'll bet the whole school knows by now," he said, throwing an arm over Roxas' shoulder as they continued to walk together.

"You told?" Roxas asked alarmingly. The look on his face was priceless.

"Now why would I do a thing like that?" Sora asked, bemused. "You just make it so obvious."

"Do I really?" Roxas asked, looking away guiltily.

"Hah! See? I knew you liked him! I knew it!" Sora exclaimed, breaking into a fit of triumphant laughter.

"But I thought you said the whole school knew," said Roxas, lifting an eyebrow in confusion.

"I say a lot of things, do I not?" Sora questioned, finally calming down enough to say anything.

"So nobody knows?" Roxas asked hopefully.

"I wouldn't be surprised if they did, but as far as I know it's highly improbable. Besides, if Axel found out, he'd be here in a heartbeat."

"Would not," disagreed Roxas.

"Would so."

"Would not."

"Would..."

--

Roxas rushed into the house, only now realizing how late it was. He hoped and prayed his father hadn't gotten home early -- assuming he hadn't, seeing as all the lights were off; Roxas made his was into the dining room. He'd been terribly mistaken.

Suddenly, he felt someone harshly grasp the back of his shirt collar. "You foolish, foolish boy," came his father's cruel, mocking voice from behind.

"I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean--"

"Shut up, you worthless piece of shit!" yelled his father, raising his hand to deliver a harsh blow to Roxas' head.

Roxas cried out in pain as he continued to hit him mercilessly. "Please," he whispered, tears welling up in the corners of his eyes, "I'm sorry."

"Not sorry enough." Roxas felt his father reach down to untangle his belt. Roxas suddenly realized what was about to happen. His father had gone and gotten himself drunk again.

No. He wasn't about to let this happen. Not again. All of the pain and the memories began to fill his mind. He screamed and pushed his father off him before managing to make it to the front door -- which he had left unlocked -- grabbing his backpack before whispering a solemn, "I hate you," he left, having no intention _at all_ of coming back.

He ran as fast as he could, not wanting to stop, afraid to stop. He didn't look back, couldn't look back. Never again was he to return. He finally slowed as he got to the train station. Looking up to the clock tower he saw that it was only 7:30. He'd no where to go. He couldn't go to Sora, no, that would be too obvious. His father would find him. He needed help. He felt a hand on the back of his shoulder. He jumped. "Hey, you alright?" came a soft voice from behind.

He turned to see who the voice could possibly belong to, meeting the eyes of a taller, apparently blonde, curious-looking person whose hair was spiked into a mohawk-styled mullet.

Hazel-brown eyes widened in recognition. "Hey, you're that kid from geometry--"

"Roxas," he corrected, not liking to be referred to as 'that kid.'

"Oh, right, sorry. What are you doing out here, Roxas?" he asked curiously. Then, upon noticing Roxas' tear-streaked cheeks, he asked, concerned, "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," said Roxas, trying to sound convincing.

"You're crying," he stated.

"I am not," denied Roxas, crossing his arms and turning away. "I'm perfectly fine."

"You don't look it."

"Yeah, well...!" shouted Roxas before he collapsed onto his knees, feeling a sudden pain sweep over his head, unable to finish. "I've... lost everything."

The guy kneeled to look at Roxas face-to-face, gently grabbing Roxas by the shoulders. "It's okay," he said, trying to be comforting, "You're gonna be alright."

_You're gonna be alright..._

--

Roxas awoke with a huge, painful throbbing in his head and chest. He blinked his eyes open, his vision a bit fuzzy at first. Rubbing his eyes awake he looked around the room. It was unfamiliar... and that scared him. Where was he? His dad... oh god... What happened??

"Hey," came a voice from behind.

Roxas turned and immediately froze as he realized who it was behind him. Axel. _What is _he_ doing here? Where _am _I?_

"You alright?" he asked, placing the back of his palm to the back of his forehead to check for fever. "God, your forehead's burning," he winced a bit, pulling his hand away to replace it with a wet rag.

"What... happened?" asked Roxas, confused and a little frightened.

"Well, Demyx kind of brought you home, carrying you through the door bridal style. Got Zexion in quite a knot for a bit. I just didn't know he was even that strong. Hey," he began, noticing something was wrong, "are you alright?"

"Yeah," Roxas replied breathlessly, "My head... it just... hurts."

"Would you like some Advil?"

"Um..." Roxas looked up, meeting those beautiful green eyes which glowed with concern for him. _For me?_ _Does he... care?_ "Yeah... some Advil would be nice," he replied softly.

"I'll be right back," said Axel as he began to stand. "Here, hold this, it should help," he said, gesturing to the rag against Roxas' forehead before getting up to walk into the next room which Roxas presumed to be the kitchen. He sighed, feeling very out of place and imposing. _What was he even doing here?_ he wondered to himself. Leaning back and closing his eyes and relaxing a bit. And to think, only hours before -- well, many hours before -- he'd been dreaming of happy endings with this same guy. Axel. His current obsession. Hey, wait, maybe this is just another dream, yeah, that's it... Just a dream.

He felt something nudging his shoulder, "Hey, who the hell are you?" came a deep voice that sounded slightly annoyed.

Roxas' eyes opened wearily, he hadn't realized how tired he was. Peering above him he saw a tall silver-haired man with darkly tanned skin and piercing orange eyes. "I..." Roxas began weakly, before being interrupted by another voice which came from behind the tall, mysterious man.

He saw another boy step up from behind. He had long, fluffy pink hair and a pale face. "What's going on?"

"Do you know this kid, Marluxia?" The dark man demanded.

"Uh, no, but you might try asking Axel or Demyx," he shrugged, turning to make his way toward a tall, old-looking staircase, "It's getting late, I think I'm gonna turn in for the night," he yawned. "G'night."

"Xemnas," stated a surprised Axel from the kitchen doorframe. "You're back, uh," he glanced at the clock; 11:45, "early."

"Not a good day," he muttered, having noted the fact he hadn't yet seen Saix all that day. "Axel, will you please explain to me why we have a stranger within our walls? You know how I feel about others. No one can be trusted."

Axel sighed, pushing Xemnas out of his way, before saying, "Relax Xemnas, he goes to my school. Demyx found him on the street in bad shape and brought him here. It's just for the night so don't worry about it. Why don't you go and see what's wrong with Saix. He's been acting weird lately, hit the books when he got home and hasn't yet taken a break, not even for dinner."

"Saix?" Xemnas inquired worriedly, before heading off to find him.

Axel sighed and kneeled down beside a curious-looking Roxas. "Sorry about that. People here have no manners. Though I'm not really one to talk," he said, handing Roxas a couple of oval-shaped pills and helping him into a sitting position so as to make it easier for Roxas to swallow. "I'm Axel, by the way," he said as Roxas drank the last of his water, already having swallowed the pills.

"Roxas," he replied, handing him the cup.

"But of course, you're in my English class. You're writing is simply amazing," Axel said, trying to be friendly.

Roxas looked at him curiously, "But how did you get a hold of my work?"

"Oh, well, I often stay behind to proofread student's papers. Prof. Sid is paying me good money for it, too."

"Oh..." Roxas looked away, he felt blood rush to his cheeks as he imagined Axel reading all his writings. He felt almost sick with embarrassment.

"Hey, are you okay?" Axel asked concernedly, noticing Roxas' face change color.

Roxas returned his gaze and nodded, "Yeah, I'm just a little tired, I guess."

"Hey, Ax... what are you doing up so late?" came a girl's voice from the staircase to their left. Roxas looked up to find a blonde girl, hair slightly ruffled with two long strands hanging limply affront her face, reaching down past her chest. She rubbed her sleepy eyes which widened – by a few centimeters -- in sudden shock as she realized who it was Axel had been talking to. "Hey, it's--"

"Go back to bed, Larx," Axel ordered, not bothering to turn around.

Her arms fell to her sides as she pouted, muttering a few curses before slowly turning to walk back to her room.

Roxas' face fell, his eyes straying from contact with Axel's. "Is that your girlfriend?"

"Girlfriend, hah!" Axel laughed. "Nah," he sighed, calming himself. "I'm too busy for girls right now."

_But you are interested in them, are you not?_ Roxas wished to ask but refrained, knowing it probably wouldn't end well. "Oh..."

"Why do you ask?" Axel inquired, wondering why Roxas' just seemed depressed all of the sudden.

"No reason," said Roxas, trying to sound convincing, "just wondering."

"Okay," Axel smiled. Something about this kid was making him act so... different. He almost felt like a completely different person. He felt... happy. As weird as that sounded. "Hey, you wouldn't mind sleeping on the couch tonight, would you? Sorry, we don't really have any extra rooms."

Roxas looked at him disbelievingly. He was so kind-hearted. Was this the same guy he saw glaring all day at school, only to give Roxas a small, curious smile as they passed each other in the hallway?

"I know it's not much, but it's better than out on the streets."

"No," said Roxas, seeing as Axel had taking this the wrong way. "No, it's, well, it's, uh..." he stuttered, feeling completely stupid, gibbering on the way he did. Somehow Axel's eyes felt reassuring. "Thanks. It's perfect."

Axel, handing him a blanket and laying out a pillow for his head, replied contentedly, "No problem."

Roxas laid down to rest his head._ Ah, that felt better._ "Um... thanks a lot Axel, this… means a lot to me."

Axel smiled and nodded. "Oh, one more thing. Hang on, I'll be right back."

Roxas couldn't help but relax, curling himself into a ball on the nice, comfy sofa. His lips curving into a contented smile and he snuggled himself tightly against his soft pillow. He felt like he was home. Never before had he felt this way, this comfortable… this _cared_ for...

Axel hurried himself back down the stairs, swiftly and almost effortlessly arriving by Roxas' side within a couple of seconds. He kneeled down and ran a gentle hand down Roxas' soft cheek before pulling the covers over the young boy and laying the spare pajamas he'd fetched for him on the coffee table just beside the couch. "Goodnight... Roxas," he whispered, clicking off the lamp to fill the room with a peaceful aura of darkness. _Goodnight..._

_End Chapter 1: A Place to Call Home_

_Xemnas - Xigbar - Xaldin - Vexen - Lexaeus - Zexion - Saix - Axel - Demyx - Luxord - Marluxia - Larxene - Roxas_

Whew! That sure took a while to finish. Hah, and it's a good thing that I can now use Microsoft Word to edit my projects… I had over 30 spelling errors on this one – not including names. Yeah. Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this first chapter. As my second AkuRoku Day gift to you, I present 'The Meaning of Family.' This is going to be a dramatic one. That doesn't mean suspenseful, just… dramatic. And romantic, of course :D. If there are anymore pairings or characters you'd like me to include, please let me know. I'll do my best to fit them in. Thanks for reading! Please review! I love my reviewers Snuggles Goodnight :D Sincerely yours,

xMysterious Darknessx


End file.
